2,000 BBVA Compass employees donate their time during Global Week of Volunteering

While this year marks the bank’s first global Week of Service, volunteerism is nothing new to BBVA Compass employees.  In 2017 alone, more than 4,000 team members logged nearly 120,000 volunteer hours. For some employees, volunteerism is just part of what they do every day, but the Global Week of Service offered a new perspective.

Carlissa Cunningham: To know my co-workers around the globe are working on similar projects confirms our commitment that ‘We are one team.’

“To know my co-workers around the globe are working on similar projects confirms our commitment that ‘We are one team.’  It is amazing the kinds of things that are being done, and the team is encouraged to participate,” said Carlissa Cunningham, Senior Financial Sales Advisor in Birmingham. “I also love the freedom being showcased to create the event around the diverse community needs.”

She added that her role in the organization equips her to participate in a variety of community events, particularly the bank’s financial education seminars. Her husband Kevin, also a BBVA Compass employee, backs up that assertion, calling his wife instrumental in organizing a number of community-oriented financial education seminars and events over the years.

Kevin Cunningham: I am proud to be involved with our chapter's efforts to participate in financial workshops and other events that promote economic development.

“She is adept as a financial expert and is eager to educate others. She often works with local organizations to get grass-roots activities developed,” said Kevin Cunningham, an engineering logistics analyst. “I'm just glad to be along for the ride! Seriously, I am proud to be involved with our chapter's efforts to participate in financial workshops and other events that promote economic development in the Birmingham and surrounding areas.”

Kevin Cunningham and his wife Carlissa actually met at a volunteer event more than 20 years ago. “ We met at a volunteer event to feed the homeless in a downtown Birmingham, Ala. park,” said Kevin Cunningham. “We still work together to help our community.”

During this year’s Global Week of Volunteering, the couple planned and participated in a variety of financial education seminars and workshops designed to meet the needs of a diverse community. The event was hosted by a BBVA Compass partner school, Carver High School. Kevin Cunningham also participated in a food pantry event  in his capacity as Birmingham Volunteer Chapter President.

The Cunninghams’ strong focus on financial literacy aligns perfectly with the bank’s Center for Financial Education program which is a community-based effort designed to provide individuals and families access to financial education. In addition to providing a chance for employees to engage with the communities the bank serves, financial education workshops also help the bank earn CRA Community Development Credit.

Kevin Cunningham: [Volunteering] lifts our hearts and spirits to see the smiles and the impact on people.

As with many BBVA Compass employees who give so much of their time to volunteer efforts, Kevin Cunningham says he is inspired by the bank’s goal to create opportunities through its global footprint. “Volunteering wears us out, but it also lifts our hearts and spirits to see the smiles and the impact on people.”